Judy Shepard On Death Of Fred Phelps

"Regarding the passing of Fred Phelps, Dennis and I know how solemn these moments are for anyone who loses a loved one. Out of respect for all people and our desire to erase hate, we’ve decided not to comment further." - Judy Shepard, in a posting on the Facebook page of the Matthew Shepard Foundation. (Tipped by JMG reader Eric)

Tweet Of The Day - Jason Collins

ESPN reports:

Brooklyn Nets center Jason Collins met privately with the parents and brother of the late Matthew Shepard following the team's 112-89 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night at Pepsi Center. The player gave Dennis and Judy Shepard an autographed, No. 98 black and white jersey, and laughter could be heard throughout the 10-minute meeting. Collins, who became the first active openly gay player in NBA history Sunday after signing a 10-day contract with the Nets, wears No. 98 in honor of Shepard, who was beaten, tortured and murdered in a 1998 anti-gay hate crime in Wyoming. "It was great," said Judy Shepard, who had spoken with Collins by phone last year after Collins announced he was gay and wore No. 98 because of her son. "It was all great. He's very kind, smart, humble. It was delightful. We were happy to finally have the opportunity to meet." She said receiving his jersey was "cool. It was very sweet, very genuine and very thoughtful." "I did not want to give them a sweaty jersey," Collins said with a laugh when asked whether it was game-worn. "This is a backup."

RELATED: Collins scored three points in last night's game. They were the first points scored by an openly gay player in NBA history, but the announcers in the below clip made only routine comments. That's probably a good thing.

NYC Pride Grand Marshall: Judy Shepard

Judy Shepard will be joining Lt. Dan Choi as Grand Marshall of this year's NYC Pride March. Via Queer New York:

NYC LGBT Pride (aka HOP) will announce Tuesday, February 16th 2010, that Judy Shepard, the mother of Matthew Shepard, has accepted the honor and role of Grand Marshal for the 41st Annual LGBT Pride March, which will occur on June 27th, 2010. When first approached about the request to be the NYC Grand Marshal, Ms. Shepard responded with excitement and a sense of honor. Ms. Shepard’s selection and acceptance of the honor of NYC LGBT Pride Grand Marshal marks her 3rd official and final appearance as an LGBT pride march Grand Marshal.

The above mention that this will be Judy's "third and final" appearance suggests that she may be retiring from public activism following the successful passage of the Matthew Shepard Act. Can anybody confirm that? Or does the HOP have a three-term limit, so to speak?

Tomorrow: President Obama To Sign Hate Crimes Bill

On Wednesday, President Obama will sign the hate crimes bill into law in a White House ceremony as Matthew Shepard's family looks on. I should have a link to the live stream of the event available here early in the day.

Judy Shepard Speaks At The NEM

BREAKING: Matthew Shepard Act Passes U.S. Senate

LGBT history was made late last night when U.S. Senate passed the Matthew Shepard Act as an amendment to a defense appropriations bill. This is the most dramatic federal endorsement of LGBT rights in history and the first major achievement made during the Obama administration.

The Senate has approved the most sweeping expansion of federal hate crimes protections since the original law was enacted after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. The legislation broadens federal reach to protect those physically attacked because of their gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or a disability. Current law is limited to crimes motivated by race, ethnicity or religion. The Senate approved the measure on a voice vote immediately after voting 63-28 to overcome Republican-led opposition to considering the measure an amendment to a defense spending bill. Sixty votes were needed to clear that procedural hurdle. The House in April passed a stand-alone hate crimes bill that is similar to the Senate legislation.

Congratulations are due in particular to Judy Shepard, who has spent the last ten years passionately fighting for this win. Thank you, Judy. Thank you.

UPDATE: Well, you knew there'd be a snag with attaching the bill to DOD funding.

Though the amendment garnered three votes more than necessary to reach cloture, the fate of the hate crimes measure is now partially linked to $1.75 billion in funding for F-22 fighter jets that is also included in the DOD legislation. President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates both oppose the F-22 program and a White House spokesperson said the president will not sign a DOD bill that continues to fund the program.

"The President has long supported the hate crimes bill and gave his personal commitment to Judy Shepard that we will enact an inclusive bill,” said Shin Inouye, referring to Shepard’s Oval Office visit with the president earlier this year. “Unfortunately, the President will have to veto the Defense Authorization bill if it includes wasteful spending for additional F-22s. The collective judgment of the Service Chiefs and Secretaries of the military departments is that the current program is sufficient to meet operational requirements. A Presidential veto would not indicate any change in President Obama’s commitment to seeing the hate crimes bill enacted."

Senators Carl Levin and John McCain have offered a bi-partisan amendment to remove the F-22 funding that is scheduled for a vote Monday, but insiders say the count is unclear. If the amendment fails and President Obama vetoes the bill, it will be sent back to the Senate for a rewrite. A Democratic Senate aide said Senator Reid was optimistic, nonetheless, that hate crimes would ultimately make the final version of DOD authorization. “This was a good vote,” said the aide. “Senator Reid is hopeful that we can keep this language in the final bill.”

Shepard Foundation Rejects Perez' $$$

Perez Hilton say he plans to file a civil lawsuit against the Black Eyed Peas and will donate any judgment he wins to the Shepard Foundation as penance for having used hate speech. But the Shepards want no part of it.

"We do not know the details of the lawsuit, whether it has been filed, the nature of his claims or the likely outcome," a statement from Judy Shepard reads. "But because the lawsuit presumably involves the physical attack prompted by Mr. Hilton's admitted use of an anti-gay slur, the Foundation will be unable to accept any funds obtained in such a manner."

Perfect response.

The Shepards On The Hate Crimes Act

Today U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to move immediately on the hate crimes bill. The bill is reportedly going to be attached to a defense appropriations bill, a tactic which failed the last time it was attempted.

Rep. Virginia Foxx Sends Letter Of Apology To Judy Shepard

After standing on the floor of Congress and calling the use of Matthew Shepard's death to advance the hate crimes bill a "hoax", Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) has sent a letter of apology to Judy Shepard, who was in the gallery during the speech.

The Matthew Shepard Foundation acknowledges receipt of the letter, but declined to discuss its contents, saying they prefer to focus on the task of getting the bill passed in the Senate. Foxx has not yet said if she now considers the murder of Matthew Shepard to have in fact been a hate crime.

Maddow Interviews Judy Shepard

Rachel Maddow provides a history lesson on the murder of Matthew Shepard, then interviews his mother Judy about the comments of Rep. Virginia Foxx. Since the murder of her son, Shepard has become a well-known national spokesperson against violence perpetrated on LGBT people.

Judy Shepard Calls For Hate Crimes Law

Matthew Shepard: Ten Years Later

It was ten years ago today that gay Wyoming college student Matthew Shepard was brutally beaten and left to die. Ten years and Wyoming still does not have a hate crimes law. This morning Matthew's mother Judy Shepard appeared on CBS News to discuss the continuing battle.

(Via - Towleroad)

Judy Shepard On Sally Kern

"Sally Kern’s comments hit me like a punch to the gut. I was enormously saddened that someone—anyone, really, but especially an elected official—could say such mean things about other human beings. We have so much to deal with already—the incessant dreary news about war, about the economy, about shocking crimes. I’m amazed that someone like Sally Kern found the time to push a whole new theory about who we should fear.

"But as despicable as Sally Kern’s ideas are, she is of course free to shout them from the rooftops. One of the oddest responses of people who agree with her has been that we are trying to restrict her freedom of speech. In reality, the Victory Fund gave her a megaphone. If she’s that proud of her speech, she must be thrilled that more than 1 million people have listened to it.

"No, the question isn’t whether she has a right to spew hateful rhetoric. The question is whether she ought to." - Judy Shepard, mother of Matthew Shepard. The Victory Fund has the full text of her statement.

Matthew Shepard Act:Progress Screwed By Principles

Democratic Senate leaders, acquiescing to their anti-war constituents, yesterday stripped the Matthew Shepard Act from the defense funding bill to which it was attached. Matthew Shepard's mother has released a statement regarding yesterday's decision:

We are truly dismayed to find that Congress now will put aside its leadership on passage of federal hate crimes legislation that includes sexual orientation and gender identity.

At this time of year that fills us all with hope for humankind, we are sad to find that a Congressional majority of each House who have already adopted the Matthew Shepard Act cannot yet come together.

If not here, where? If not now, when?

Make no mistake; this is a small triumph of process over principle. We are dedicated to redoubling our efforts next year to achieve our vision of a hate-free America that truly includes everyone. This has never simply been about Matthew Shepard and our family, this legislation is a gift delayed but never forgotten for all America's families.

We thank our friends, allies and champions in Washington and around the world who have struggled so hard this year. We know that we will unite once again next year to achieve passage of this milestone human rights legislation.

So the hate crimes bill is dead for this year, basically due to the unwillingness of Democrats to fund the war, even though the bill will pass easily now that the Matthew Shepard Act has been removed. Rep. Barney Frank is calling for the Senate to consider it as a stand-alone bill as early as February. The House passed a stand-alone hate crimes act earlier this year.

What a fucked-up scenario. Republicans threatened to vote against the bill because it protected dirty queers. Democrats threatened to vote against the bill because it funded a dirty war.

Solution: toss out the queers, FUND THE WAR ANYWAY. Is anybody surprised?
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Battle Cry For Hate Crimes Bill

The current issue of The Advocate features a joint column by HRC head Joe Solmonese and activist Judy Shepard calling for immediate action on a national hate crimes law, as this may be the best year to get such a bill passed.

Fear of violence remains a horrible reality for millions of GLBT Americans—even in places that many consider “tolerant” or “progressive.” Every act of violence is tragic and harmful in its consequences, but not all crime is based on hate. A bias-motivated crime affects not only the victim and his or her family but an entire community or category of people and their families.

The current federal hate-crimes law, enacted nearly 40 years ago, covers only bias attacks based on race, ethnicity, national origin, and religion. In the case of a hate crime based on sexual orientation or gender identity, our government’s hands are tied: It doesn’t have the authority to go after perpetrators of anti-LGBT violent crime. It’s time to update the law to protect everyone.

Recent high profile anti-gay hate crimes have dramatized the need for a national hate crimes law that includes crimes against LGBT people. Read the Solmonese/Shepard Advocate column here.
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